Gismonti began his formal music studies at the age of six on piano. After studying classical music for 15 years, he went to Paris to study orchestration and analysis with Nadia Boulanger and the composer Jean Barraqué, a disciple of Arnold Schönberg and Anton Webern. After his return to Brazil, Gismonti began to explore other musical genres. He was attracted by Maurice Ravel's approach to orchestration and chord voicings, as well as by choro, a Brazilian instrumental popular music featuring various types of guitars. In order to play this music he learned to play guitar, beginning on the 6-string classical instrument and switching to a ten-stringed guitar in 1973. He spent two years experimenting with different tunings and searching for new sounds. This exploration of timbre is further reflected in his use of kalimbas, shō, voice, bells, etc. By the early '70s, he had laid the groundwork for his current style which incorporated elements drawn from musicians as wide-ranging as Django Reinhardt and Jimi Hendrix. In the 1970s and 1980s he collaborated several times with Naná Vasconcelos recording for ECM. Some best-selling albums such as the Brazilian released eponymous Egberto Gismonti were never officially released in the US.
Janela de ouro
Egberto Gismonti Lyrics
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Confusao, os dias febris
Descobrir um pais na manha ao som dos sinos de metal
Na vila do mar
Nao sabia quanta chuva e sol
Eu trazia entre as minhas maos
Eu esperei a pedra gritar
Mas Maria Cruz nao sabe porque
E o misterio do sertao
No pais do sol
Acho o rastro da destruicao
E essas serras nao me enganam mais
Nao quero mais o mofo e o po
A cicatriz perdendo suor
Traicao, e clarins na manha ao som dos sinos de metal
Na vila do mar
Nao sabia quanta chuva e sol
Eu trazia entre as minhas maos
A traicao, a traicao...
In Egberto Gismonti's song Janela de Ouro, the singer expresses their aversion towards the overwhelming pain, confusion and feverishness that they have experienced in their past. They seek to discover a new country and a new dawn, whose arrival is heralded by the sound of metal bells in the village by the sea. The singer acknowledges their lack of knowledge about the amount of rain and sun they have endured in their journey before, as they waited for a stone to scream. Maria Cruz is introduced as a character whose relationship to the singer and the events mentioned in the song are not clear.
In the second half of the song, the singer proclaims their rejection of the musty and dusty environment that they have encountered in their travels. They also mention the presence of destruction and dangerous mountains, which they have learned to recognize. The singer again refers to the cicatrices on their body, which are losing sweat. They allude to feelings of betrayal and the sound of metal bells in the village by the sea. Finally, the singer sings about carrying the weight of betrayal in their hands.
This song's meaning is open to interpretation, and it is suggestive of themes of nostalgia, pain, searching for a new beginning, betrayal, and the mystery of unknown places. Its lyrics are evocative and picturesque, lending themselves to various interpretations.
Line by Line Meaning
Nao quero mais o cheiro de dor
I no longer want the smell of pain
Confusao, os dias febris
Confusion, the feverish days
Descobrir um pais na manha ao som dos sinos de metal
Discovering a country in the morning to the sound of metal bells
Na vila do mar
In the seaside village
Nao sabia quanta chuva e sol
I didn't know how much rain and sun
Eu trazia entre as minhas maos
I carried in my hands
Eu esperei a pedra gritar
I waited for the stone to scream
Mas Maria Cruz nao sabe porque
But Maria Cruz doesn't know why
O suor, os dragoes da manha
The sweat, the morning dragons
E o misterio do sertao
And the mystery of the countryside
No pais do sol
In the land of the sun
Acho o rastro da destruicao
I find the trace of destruction
E essas serras nao me enganam mais
And these mountains don't fool me anymore
Nao quero mais o mofo e o po
I no longer want the mold and the dust
A cicatriz perdendo suor
The scar losing sweat
Traicao, e clarins na manha ao som dos sinos de metal
Betrayal, and bugles in the morning to the sound of metal bells
Na vila do mar
In the seaside village
Nao sabia quanta chuva e sol
I didn't know how much rain and sun
Eu trazia entre as minhas maos
I carried in my hands
A traicao, a traicao...
The betrayal, the betrayal...
Contributed by Alexis D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.